Katherine Heigl

Katherine Marie Heigl (born November 24, 1978) is an Emmy Award-winning American actress.

Heigl was born in Washington, D.C., the daughter of Nancy, a personal manager, and Paul Heigl, a financial executive accountant. Heigl has German and Irish ancestry, and was raised a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She is the youngest of four children (in addition to siblings Meg, Jason, and Holt). Heigl lived in Virginia and then Denver before her family settled in Connecticut, where they moved into a large, old Victorian-style farmhouse in the wealthy town of New Canaan, where she spent most of her childhood.

In 1986, her older brother Jason died of injuries suffered in a car accident, after being thrown from the back of a pickup truck while out for lunch with some of his high school classmates. Following his death, the family decided to donate his organs. Afterwards, their parents converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Heigl is now a strong proponent of organ donation. Although she is no longer a practicing Mormon, she remains positive on several aspects of the religion, and has expressed interest in returning to her faith.

When Heigl was nine, an aunt visiting the family decided to take a number of photographs of her. After returning to her home in New York, the aunt sent the photos to a number of modeling agencies, with the permission of Heigl's parents. Within a few weeks, Heigl was signed as a child model. Almost immediately afterwards, a client slated Heigl for use in a magazine advertisement where she made her debut. She was soon earning $75 an hour posing for Sears and Lord & Taylor catalogs. Television jobs soon followed, the first in a national spot for Cheerios cereal. She made her acting debut in the 1992 movie That Night. Heigl appeared as Christina Sebastian in Steven Soderbergh's Depression-era drama King of the Hill before being cast in her first leading role in the 1994 comedy My Father the Hero. During this time, Heigl continued to attend New Canaan High School, balancing her film and modeling work with her academic studies. Heigl dropped out of New Canaan High School after her sophomore year to pursue her career in Hollywood.

In 1995, she starred in the Steven Seagal action thriller Under Siege 2: Dark Territory. Heigl portrayed his 16-year-old niece travelling on a train across a mountain pass (out of communications range) to visit the grave of her deceased father with uncle Casey, an ex-SEALS counter-terrorist expert. The main plotline has the train hi-jacked by mercenaries in Colorado, keeping her as a hostage. Much of her work in the film was opposite Morris Chestnut, Sandra Taylor and Everett McGill.

Despite an increased focus on acting, she still modeled extensively, appearing regularly in magazines such as Seventeen. She took the lead role in Disney's made-for-television film Wish Upon a Star in 1996. Also in 1996, Heigl's parents divorced and her mother was diagnosed with cancer. After her high school graduation in 1997, she moved with her mother into a four-bedroom house in Malibu Canyon, Los Angeles, and her mother became her manager. In 1998, she co-starred with Peter Fonda in a re-working of the classic Shakespearian play The Tempest, set during the American Civil War. Later that year, she starred in the horror film Bride of Chucky. In 1999, Heigl turned her attention to television when she accepted the role of Isabel Evans on the science fiction TV drama Roswell, a role that was expanded in the show's second and third seasons. Heigl had auditioned for all 3 female leads on Roswell before she was finally cast as Isabel. In 2005, Heigl was cast in what would become her most high-profile role, as intern Dr. Isobel "Izzie" Stevens on Grey's Anatomy, an ABC medical drama. The show, originally introduced as a mid-season replacement, has become a huge ratings success.

Despite Heigl's constant reassurances that she is "quite boring... really," Movie Entertainment called Heigl a complex individual with many contrasts, referring to her as an "ex-model with a strong feminist streak" and an "actress known for her dramatic roles who really wants to do comedy."

Heigl was once in a relationship with Roswell costar Jason Behr but that relationship ended around the time the series ended. In June 2006, she became engaged to singer Josh Kelley, whom she met on the set of his music video for "Only You." They were married on December 23, 2007 in Park City, Utah. For their honeymoon they went to the Esperanza resort in Cabo San Lucas. In December 2007, Heigl and Kelley moved into a new home in Los Feliz, California. At the end of 2007, Barbara Walters named Heigl one of "The 11 Most Fascinating People of 2007 " on an ABC program of that title. Heigl questioned her inclusion on the list, saying that in fact she is actually "quite boring.....not, just kidding, but really".